Don't Walk Away
by TwoCentsForFree
Summary: A young Jesse Katsopolis fears the relationship between him and his sister will change when she marries Danny Tanner. Yeah, I know, we're takin' it back to preFH, but creativity is a writer's best friend. Please R&R. Thanks.


_Don't Walk Away_

_A young Jesse Katsopolis fears that the relationship between him and his sister will be changed when she gets married to Danny Tanner._

Most boys of thirteen are monopolized with thoughts of pretty young girls. Such was not the case for one Jesse Katsopolis. He knew girls, he _liked_ girls, but they certainly weren't his primary focus. After all, he had enough to deal with as it was. He had become increasingly withdrawn and everyone blamed it on hormones, but he knew better. His plight did actually involve a girl; one he admired a great deal: His sister.

Pam Katsopolis was a nice looking girl of about nineteen. She was Jesse's closest confidant and, even if it was unknown to her, his best friend. He thought that he could tell her anything and she'd return the sentiment. The trouble started when she fell in love with Danny Tanner:A polite, gangly, neat freak andher high school sweetheart.

"I've got good news," she said to her sibling one afternoon.

"What?" the boy asked, eager to share in it.

"I'm bringing my boyfriend home tomorrow night."

"Cool."

"Yeah…so don't act like a loser." _What was this all of a sudden? Don't act like a loser?_ "All right…I won't."

Friday night rolled around and, sure enough, when Jesse got home from his guitar lesson, there they were, making out on the living room couch.He cleared his throat to make his presence known. They stopped, slightly embarrassed.

"Good, you're home…Danny, this is my little brother, Jesse," she introduced. "Jesse, this is Danny."

"Hey, little guy," Danny said. "Aww…he's a cute little kid, isn't he?"

"He's okay." For the rest of the night, Jesse tried to stay out of their way, but his curiosity got the best of him. Long after being sentenced to bed, he hung out in the hallway, listening and watching. He eventually lost track of time and dozed off. When he awoke next, he was in bed, his sister standing over him.

"What's goin' on?" he questioned, voice thick with sleep.

"For starters, you fell asleep eavesdropping on me and Danny…I found you there about a half hour ago, and here you are. Any more questions?"

"Nope…good night." He didn't move again till morning.

Jesse had nothing against Danny; he could tell Pam really loved him. That's all he really wanted, to see her happy. The problem was, she was spending less and less time with her brother and more and more time with her boyfriend. That had to stop.

"Wanna listen to my new Who album with me?" he asked one evening.

"Can't right now…gotta go meet Danny, we're going to the movies."

_Just another thing to not include me in._ "No big deal…have fun." The time he spent away from her threatened to kill him. Normally, they'd be having some kind of fun right now: Playing a game, watching TV, chatting about things that didn't really matter in the long run; just being there, together, in the moment. He was so bored that he picked up a book and began to read…and read…and read.

Scholastics had never been Jesse's strong suit, but he was enthralled by the story of _Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. _The tale struck a chord with him because it reminded him so much of his sister. She was often like Jekyll, a 'hey-let's-go-out-for-ice-cream-my-treat' kind of person; the kind he loved and wanted back. Now that Danny was in the picture, she was this 'get-away-and-stay-away-do-I-know-you' acting _creature._

Tensions hit an all time high when Danny unexpectedly popped over one Saturday afternoon

"Hey, Jason," he greeted.

"It's Jesse."

"Right, sorry…is your sister around?"

"Yeah." When she came out of the house, the ritual began again.

"Hi, sweetheart…Jesse, go somewhere else, we're having a private conversation." But Jesse didn't go very far. He hid behind a tree and scrutinized. Danny seemed very nervous, but excited.

"Pam…I…uh…that is, I have a question to ask you."

"Okay. What is it?" As Jesse watched in horror, Danny got down on one knee.

"Will you marry me?"

"Oh, Danny…yes, yes I will. How will I tell my parents?"

"Doesn't matter…we'll run off, get married, and break it to 'em later." Jesse had heard way more than he could take. No way was he going to let this guy show up and take his sister out of his life for good! He finally snapped and ran out from behind the tree, lunging at Danny, tackling him to the ground. Danny tried to fight back, but Jesse just kept on punching him.

"Hey, cut it out!" the victim yelped, trying to shield his nose, which got a hard right. Jesse wouldn't hear of it.

"No!" he shouted with each jab at him, "No! You can't do this! You just can't!" Pam rushed to her fiancé's aid, prying her brother off of him.

"You can't do this to me! You can't!" he yelled, restrained, but making a run at Danny anyway. "You can't do this!"

"Jesse, stop it!" she hollered, trying to be heard above him.

"No! I won't let it happen!" She grabbed him by both shoulders and gave him a quick, hard shake.

"Jesse, that's _enough_!" When she released him, Jesse took off running towards the house. The lovers swapped confused looks. After treating Danny's wounds, Pam decided to check on the assailant. She knocked softly on his bedroom door.

"Can I come in?" No response. She opened the door and peered in. She saw the boy lying on his bed with his back to her. _Maybe he's asleep, _she thought, but realized it a misconception when he said,

"Go away."

"Let's talk."

"No."

"Please? I've been dying to know what all that was about."

"Can't tell you."

"_You _can't talk to _me_ about how you're feeling? That's a first."

"I can't tell you, 'cause it concerns you." She sat down on the bed.

"Well, now I _really _wanna hear it."

"I wish I could…." he sighed. "But I can't, I'm sorry."

"You can tell me anything…you know that. That's why I'm here." He looked at her. There was pain on his face.

"Pam…I'm scared."

"Jess, we've already been through this…there's no monster under your bed… you're totally safe."

"No," he said. "I'm afraid of Danny." She tried to hold the laughter in, but failed.

"I am 150 sure that my fiancé is not gonna hide under your bed tonight."

"No… I'm scared that if you marry Danny, then our relationship will be different."

"How so?"

"That all you'll care about is him and that we won't get to be together nearly as much, and that you'll stop loving--- " His voice faltered and broke off. Suddenly, she understood.

"Danny is my boyfriend…you are my brother…nothing's gonna change that." The boy glanced up. His brown eyes were full of tears.

"I don't wanna lose you," he whimpered. "Don't walk away…please?" He buried his face back in the pillow, sobs racking his small body. She gently rubbed his back and stroked his thick, jet-black hair, saying,

"Don't worry…I'm not going anywhere…shhh, it's alright…I'm right here…you're okay…I love you…" Somewhere, in the deepest recesses of Jesse's heart, there was a faint bit of relief at this exchange. That, in itself, was enough. He eventually calmed down and dared to look up.

"So…are ya gonna marry him or what?"

"Not until I know that you're gonna be alright with this…are you?" He grinned.

"Yeah."

"Promise?"

"I promise." The deal was sealed with a tight embrace.

About a week later, Jesse saw his sister packing to go somewhere.

"Whatcha doin'?" he asked, curiosity aroused.

"I'm going on a little trip with Danny…we're gonna get married."

"Does Mom know?"

"I…uh…kinda told her I was going to stay with a friend of mine. She doesn't know what's really going on. You can't tell her, either."

"Why not?"

"It's a long story. Bottom line is, Jesse, you _cannot_ _say a word._ I'm counting on you to keep my secret," she pleaded. He nodded.

"My lips are sealed." Danny was parked in his car out front. As Pam went to meet him, Jesse tagged along like a lost puppy. Danny got out when he saw her, but stepped back when he noticed the kid.

"You---you stay away," he said, warily. Jesse hung his head, but said to the other,

"I have a favor to ask you."

"Sure."

"Take care of my sister…" A smile broke over Danny's face.

"Sure thing, Jesse…we'll see you when we get back." Then, they left. As Jesse watched them go, he was looking forward to not only having his big sister, but a brother-in-law, as well.


End file.
